day in youghal and ardmore

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So, oh MY GOSH!!! I am sooooooo glad I went on the chaplaincy trip!!! it was SOOOOOO cold but it was amazing!! and well worth the frostbite! haha no not really but at times it felt like it, don't let the sunshine in some shots fool you, it never got above like 25 degrees F. I was thanking my good fortune of finding a really nice jacket (cause my top actually never got cold) but my fingers were about to fall off and even after the bus heater was turned on, it still took a good 20 minutes for them to defrost.

So we went to Youghal first, pronounced Yawl (like southern people combine you and all, y'all), it was about an hour outside of cork city. We only got about an hour to spend there but I think we used it well. First we went to eat because well, they told us to. So I had a ham and cheese panini and then my friend and I split a creme puff it was AMAZING!! it looked like an eclair that had been cut in half to put the creme in instead of just stuffed but ya! so good!! then we went on a mini adventure to see the water because we only had a little time left and it actually started snowing on us, so we had to make it quick! but ya the most adorable town in the world, it actually looked like how I thought cork was going to look because it was kind of a one road town and right on the water, but i was wrong and very glad for it. i think having so many college kids in such a small area would get very dangerous, VERY fast!!

Anyway, we saw the port where apparently a large amount of goods come in or use to? (my mom wasn't there so I can't be like what did he say about that?) and we saw where they filmed a scene for moby dick. my paper says that it is located on the estuary of the river blackwater, and in the past was militarily and economically important. it is regarded as one of the most popular tourist destinations in ireland, which I think you can tell by the pics even on a cold day. The three main attractions are the waterfront, which we walked to and drove past, the clocktower, which we walked under and the church. apparently this town was one of the hardest hit during this economic downturn and is experiencing a large amount of unemployment. that is actually something that i am seeing a lot here, even more so than america. It is so sad to see these amazing towns with doors boarded up or people on the streets, especially after the flood they just had, even more businesses are closed and unable to return. anyway, we then had to go into a store to get warm, so we went and found postcards in this little giftshop, then got back on the bus to head for our tour in ardmore.

Ardmore, pronounced ard-vore, isn't actually in county cork, its in count waterford and is very proud to proclaim so. apparently saint declan (the first"true" saint of ireland, even dating before saint patrick, YEAH! i know) followed a boulder with his bell on it to a shore. On this shore, where this boulder landed, he created a cathedral and his home. The famed boulder still exists today and is included in my pictures. Apparently if you get under it you will be cured of all back problems (the tour guide said he thought that if you could actually get under the rock, you wouldn't have back problems in the 1st place, but?) this place is a pilgrimage made by many in july. its name means "the great height" which you can tell why from my pics, its really really high! and of course on a one person walking route.

oh let me just tell you that this place was like 10 degrees colder so about 15 degrees? and wind off the water, needless to say we were all really COLD and the tour was an outside walking tour for THREE HOURS!!!!! having said that i will continue. we we then went to the place where declan founded his "hermitage" (and if you know my goal in life, to be a hermit, i was like DUDE "hermitage" so my place!!) anyway it was gorgeous, of course in ruins but just amazing, this pilgrimage site, including healing well and rubbed prayer rock was right on the water and so so peaceful. It was really neat, the tour guide had us all shut our traps and listen. he said it sounded the same thousands of years ago when that space was actually used and I just was like WOW someone stood there, thousands of people have stood where i stood and laid down their life and given up their problems to christ. thousands have traveled to this one spot and like them I was now doing the same. I dont know how to explain it, but it was INCREDIBLE and just one of those moments I will remember forever.

we then went on the walking path pictured, yes it was really one by one and sometimes barely that, on the side of this huge cliff. it was just majestic as you will see but for someone often terrified by heights, way uncomfortable in some places. there were a few stops, one for the castle thing you will see and that was the for the coast guard that was stationed there hundreds and hundreds of years ago to watch out for enemy war vessels trying to come into the port of youghal. the guide told us about this one family that lived near by that was linked with some of the most famous people in england and in france way back when. something about marriage of two daughters, smuggling and 7000 locks of hair in envelopes. (if anyone wants to hear the story, tell me and ill tell you more, or at least what i can remember, just let me know)

we then looped around to the monastery/cathedral and the round tower. it is said that this is the first and most perfect round tour in the entire world. it has the traditional irish four rings and the opening 14 feet up. it was said to at one time house precious documents and works of art by the priests of the town. declan actually is buried there in a little stone house. it is said that there is a whole in the ground because a merchant would gather up the clay from the ground and sell it to townsfolk saying that they would have a part of saint declan with them, and inevitably many are buried with their piece of clay. the cathedral itself has celtic carved panels depicting scenes from the old testament. they even have stones with an early form of some line language on the inside (like they made lines on the stone and that was their writing, sorry no pic, my camera ran out of battery life by then). and that was it. it was really funny because we went to clap for him and all you could hear was muffled clapping, because every single one of us had gloves on. we then gave him a bottle of whiskey (irish thanks) and headed back down to the village.

so ya that was my day! pretty amazing. if you guys have any thing else you want to know about, just let me know i was just trying to keep it as brief as I could. hope you enjoy the pics, talk to you soon.

mom- love you on saturday!

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Comments

[PA Connell]

Fan Club
You didn't plan it to happen but you now have an RP Fan club because you are so special. We all love following your journey and so appreciate the time you take to share your story with us. I check daily for your story and the weather report. We love you so, PA

[Ivy]

:)
Beautiful pictures!! You have no idea how proud I am of you. :):):) I love you B!